Sometimes adolescence seems like centuries ago, and sometimes, at 34, I still feel like the same insecure girl I was over 2 decades ago.
Much has changed, of course, and many things are the same. Or better. A great number are still undetermined.
To celebrate growth and reflection, I thought I would write a letter to my 12-year-old self. Continue reading
Inspiration: She Let Go by Safire Rose
She let in.
She let in a quiet acceptance for the body she had always harshly critiqued.
She let in emotion. Joy for the ordinary. Grief for her loss. Excitement for her accomplishments. Disappointment for the unattained things in which she had hoped.
She let in her feelings without the need to analyze, judge, deny, or defend them.
She let in appreciation for her past, contentment for her present, and faith for her future.
She let in the vulnerability to be seen and the strength to know her value. Continue reading
Not This.
It rang clear and true while I sat in the workshops, networked in the exhibit hall, chewed my dinner during the Awards Banquet.
Not This, Not This, Not This.
The concept of “Not This” comes from bestselling author, Elizabeth Gilbert. Gilbert writes, “Most of us, at some point in our lives (unless we have done everything perfectly…which is: nobody) will have to face a terrible moment in which we realize that we have somehow ended up in the wrong place.” She goes on to say, “I call this moment of realization: NOT THIS.”
This was my moment of realization. This was my Not This. Continue reading
In a world where society seems to tell us that we have to be perfect and to do everything with perfection, it’s a breath of fresh air to step back and realize a few things, not only about life, but about ourselves and those around us. That refreshing feeling of coming to place of really appreciating all that there is and accepting ourselves just the way we are.
Here are 7 things that have been enlightening in my daily routines: Continue reading
Without ever labeling it, I began struggling with anxiety in college. It was the first time in my life that I was overcome with a desire, which felt more like a need, to be perfect. I hit the gym at 6 am for the perfect body, and I studied like crazy for perfect grades. It became an almost addictive pattern. The more control I felt I had, the more control I craved.
And so, it didn’t stop with graduation. It only intensified. I had all the classic symptoms that came with it: excessive worry, trouble sleeping, stomach issues, and a lot of inexplicable sweaty panic. But I justified my anxiety as a good thing. Because as much as it destroyed me, I’d convinced myself that it simultaneously drove me to be my best. Until it didn’t. Continue reading
I’m wearing sweatpants as I write. Which is unsurprising, because I spend as much time as possible in my sweats. It’s been a lifelong love affair between me and that glorious cotton/poly blend and I have the childhood photos to prove just how often I’ve chosen to favor comfort over fashion.
So, it pretty much goes without saying that I can totally get on board with hitting the gym in sweats. Especially on an 8-degree morning, like the one detailed in The New York Times OpEd piece, ‘Why Yoga Pants Are Bad For Women’.
What I can’t get on board with is this: shaming women who choose to wear anything else, like the “skintight, saran-wrap-thin yoga pants” the author references. Continue reading
I’ve received a lot of advice since becoming a new mom.
“Sleep when the baby sleeps.”
“Follow your instincts!”
“Soak up every minute.”
But the thing I hear most often, in some variation or another, is
“Wine. Lots and lots of wine.” Continue reading
It’s been a while (which we apparently can’t say without having Staind, circa 2009 lyrics play in our head) since we last shared a post of the things we’re loving lately. Join us as we jump into a list of what’s making our lives a little sweeter these days. Continue reading
My husband and I have been married for almost ten years. That’s difficult for me to fathom, at times, considering I was a shy, anxious teenager who accumulated very little dating experience before meeting my future spouse senior year of college.
Despite being married for as long as we have, my husband and I are not overly zealous about Valentine’s Day.
Perhaps my apathy for Cupid and price-gouged roses is due to my lack of serious relationships over the years, or maybe I just don’t think we need a heavily commercialized holiday in order express our love to one another. Continue reading
I love Melissa McCarthy and I really love Ellen DeGeneres, so I was a little bummed when I forgot to record their interview a few days ago. I asked my parents if they’d seen it and immediately knew they hadn’t when my dad responded something along the lines of, “Oh yeah. It was so funny.”
“Okay, so you didn’t see it either.” I said.
“Why do you say that?” He asked.
“Because, you’d say it was just okay,” my mom and I replied in unison. Continue reading
